Superior Spider-Man #27.NOWReview

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Darkness falls across the land.

By Jesse Schedeen

Beware of spoilers regarding the fate of the Superior Spider-Man series!

As much as I hate it when publishers spoil plot developments months before the comic in question actually comes out, I can't say "Goblin Nation" is any worse off for the knowledge that this series is ending soon and making way for an Amazing Spider-Man relaunch. If anything, it adds a grim sense of finality to a story that is already pretty darn grim in its first issue. It really does feel like everything Dan Slott has written for the past year has led to this point, where Otto will either prove his superiority once and for all or see his entire world come crashing down.

As much as this book has frustrated with its breakneck pace and tendency to barrel right through major events, it's good to see Slott skip ahead in this issue and plop readers (and Otto) right into the thick of his conflict with Green Goblin. One month after the previous issue's prologue chapter, the Goblin Nation has already risen up and left its mark on New York. There's a fun sensation of Otto and Green Goblin (whomever is under the mask) playing a complex game of chess against one another. Slott quickly establishes the stakes for Otto in both his personal and professional lives. Otto is beginning to reap what he's sown in terms of all the relationships he's damaged lately. Most importantly, the fact that the series is now so focused on this one, specific conflict eliminates the cluttered feel the previous few storylines have suffered from.

Of the regular troupe of Superior artists, Giuseppe Camuncoli was easily the best choice for this arc. His harsher style meshes well with the overall darker tone of "Goblin Nation." In particular, his more sinister portrayal of Green Goblin and his surreal approach to Peter's "mindscape" are just what the series needed at this stage.